Development of a Composite Sustainability Index for Roadway Intersection Design Alternatives in the UAE

Maryam J Al-Kaabi,Yasser S Hawas,Munjed A Maraqa

doi:10.3390/su12208696

Maryam J Al-Kaabi, Yasser S Hawas + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/su12208696

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Abstract

Many studies have been carried out to evaluate the sustainability of transportation systems, but little attention has been given for the design of roadway intersections. This study aimed to establish a framework and develop a tool to assess the sustainability of roadway intersections from a road-user perspective. Sustainability indicators at the strategic level were extracted from the literature and were utilized with relative weights to develop economic, environmental, and social indices that would be combined into a composite sustainability index (CSI) tool. The tool was applied to four case studies of intersections in Al Ain, United Arab Emirates. For each case study, the sustainability of fifteen design alternatives was evaluated for different scenarios of traffic volume and operational speed. Dimensional indices and the overall CSI were determined using the Multi-Criteria Decision Making method. Results indicated that traffic volume had a significant impact on intersection sustainability ranking, while the effect of operational speed was insignificant. Moreover, weight assignment had an effect on determining the most sustainable design alternative, where the best alternatives of the dimension with the major weight would most likely be the most sustainable. The developed tool would assist decision-makers in other cities to assess intersection projects that correspond to their regional goals.

Highlights

With the recent “industrial revolution”, the economic and industrial sectors undertook fast developments
The International Energy Agency (IEA) claims that transport activities were responsible for approximately a quarter of the total global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in 2016 [2]
The Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) method was applied to evaluate the proposed intersection design alternatives based on the chosen set of indicators

Summary

Introduction

With the recent “industrial revolution”, the economic and industrial sectors undertook fast developments. Some of these developments were at the expense of a lot of natural and social equity considerations. Sustainable development can be defined as the “development that meets the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”. This definition reflects the three aspects of environment, economy, and social equity [1]. Transportation activities and projects play a big role in urban development that should be carefully considered. Achieving transport sustainability is a huge step in obtaining sustainable urban development

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